An impulse led her to it. ‘The trees, Farnor,’ she said. ‘The trees. They let you in. And if they did that then they want you here for some reason. Father thinks that’s why they’ve taken Marken away. To find out what it’s all about.’
Farnor looked at her dubiously, a faint smile hovering uncertainly at the edges of his mouth. ‘The trees,’ he said, raising his eyebrows. ‘They let me in?’
Edrien nodded, her eyes fixed on his face.
‘Nothing to do with the fact that my horse was running fit to plough through a mountainside? The trees let me in?’
Edrien nodded again and gestured at Bildar. ‘We think so,’ she said.
Farnor’s smile broadened, though it was not without some nervousness. ‘I’m sorry. If this is some kind of Valderen joke, I’m afraid it’s beyond me.’ He stood up again. ‘I think I
